Arizona Registrar of Contractors

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Name Availability

Name Availability - Selecting Your Company Name

The Name Availability Rule expressed below and how the Registrar uses the rule to approve names is not a difficult process. A form to reserve a name is no longer required, as it was historically. To avoid issues with regards to the name of your company, when applying for a license simply review and follow the information below:

R4-9-109. Name of Licensee or Applicant

Definitions.
1. Official Name of Record. The term “official name of record” means either:
  1. The name of the licensee on file at the Arizona Corporation Commission, if the licensee is a corporation or a limited liability company;
  2. The name of the licensee on file at the Secretary of State’s Office, if the licensee is a partnership; or
  3. The name of the licensee on a government-issued identification card, if the licensee is an individual operating as a sole proprietorship.
2. Trade Name and DBA. The terms “trade name” and “DBA” each mean the name in which the licensee actually does business as a contractor.
General Rules about the Licensee’s Name.
1. Names on a License. On any license issued by the Registrar, the Registrar must include:
  1. The licensee’s official name of record, and
  2. Any trade name used with that license.
2. Name on the Bond. Every name on the licensee’s license must be on the license bond exactly as it appears on the license.
3. Licensee’s Name and the License Scope. Neither a licensee’s official name of record nor its trade name may include, reference, or suggest a scope of work that is not included in the scope of the license issued by the Registrar. This prohibition does not apply if:
  1. The licensee holds a separate license with a scope that is included, referenced, or suggested by the licensee’s name; or
  2. The licensee:
    1. Does not use the official name of record to do business as a contractor, and
    2. Uses instead a trade name that does not include, reference, or suggest a scope of work that is not included in the scope of the license.
4. Conducting Business Using a Name on the License. Any time a licensee conducts business in Arizona as a contractor, the licensee must conduct that business using either the official name of record or the trade name on the license issued by the Registrar.
Rules about the Licensee’s Name at the Time of a License Application.
1. Evidence of Official Name of Record. When applying for a license, the applicant must provide the Registrar with satisfactory evidence of the applicant’s official name of record.
2. Applicant’s Name as Basis for Denial. The Registrar may deny an application for a license if:
  1. The issued license would violate this Rule; or
  2. Conducting business as a contractor using any name on the license would, under A.R.S. § 32-1154(A)(15), constitute any false, misleading, or deceptive advertising whereby any member of the public may be misled and injured.
Rules about the Licensee’s Request to Change Its Name on a License. If a licensee requests in writing that the Registrar change one or more names on a license, the Registrar must grant the request if:
1. There has been no change in the legal form of the licensee;
2. There has been no change in the ownership of the licensee;
3. The licensee provides a bond rider;
4. Every requested name is printed on the bond rider exactly;
5. The licensee provides the fee for the name change; and
6. The requested name does not violate this Rule or any provision in Chapter 10, Title 32